Their Family: Beginnings
by Kageteiou
Summary: The story of the beginnings of Ichigo and Rukia's family.Chapter 4 now up.   CH.4 desc. As Rukia begins to long for a reunion with old friends, her and the family find themselves in the world of the living where they find out a surprise lies in the future
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: The Proposal**

Ichigo and Rukia stood in the lobby of the most expensive restaurant in Karakura Town. They had been dating for two years now and they had never been happier. Though the couple lived in the Soul Society, Ichigo had convinced his girlfriend to let him take her to this restaurant. He was planning something very important tonight, and he hoped everything would go right. Unfortunately, Rukia was beginning to lose her patience.

"What are we doing here Idiot," she snapped at him. "There are plenty of places we could have gone in the Soul Society, why did we have to come here?" she asked as she fumed.

"Calm down midget, it will be revealed after dinner," he replied with a hint of frustration. "I chose this place because it is the nicest restaurant I know of in both the Soul Society and the human world," he continued. He suddenly realized that everyone in the lobby was looking at them. It took him a moment to realize that no one in the restaurant let alone the human world knew what the Soul Society was. "Oh Crap, they probably think we just broke out of the psych ward or something!" he thought to himself. "Ru…," he began before his girlfriend broke into another rant and interrupted him.

"I mean you could have at least made reservations ahead of time…we have been waiting here for over an hour!" she yelled. "Are you listening to me?" she asked yelling at the top of her lungs.

If he ever saw his father again he swore he would kill him. He had asked him to do one thing and one thing only. That was to make sure to get a reservation for 8:00 tonight. When the couple arrived from the Soul Society and he went to confirm the reservation, he found out that the reservation was never made. Now Rukia was fuming and they were running the risk of being kicked out of the restaurant. He did the first thing that came to his mind. He gave her a deep loving kiss.

She hated when he kissed her like that. No matter how mad she was at him, her defenses would always melt away. She loved everything about his man. They shared a common past, each having someone they cared about taken away because of a hollow. She tried to resist it, but she couldn't help falling in love with him. She knew he felt the same, and that was all the mattered to her.

"I hate when you do that," she said with a smile after the long kiss.

He was glad it worked; there was still time to salvage the night. He grasped at the tiny box that sat in his pocket. This was the night he was going to ask Rukia to marry him. He loved her with all of his heart, and there was nothing that would change that. They still bickered like they did when they first met, but he secretly enjoyed their little squabbles. There was no one else he would rather be with.

After the brief scene, the couple finally got to their table. She had never been on a date in the human world, so she didn't know what to expect. She and Ichigo had been on dates before, but they were usually midnight strolls in the Soul Society, or a dinner in his captain's quarters. She wished she knew what was so important about this particular night. All he had said was it would be a night that she would never forget.

"Rukia…there's something that I wanted to ask you," he began. "We have been together for awhile now, and they have been the happiest two years of my life." "When I wake up with you beside me, I want it to be like that every day."

She was beginning to blush now. He couldn't be doing what she thought he was doing. She already knew her answer if she was right. He was her everything. She wanted nothing else but to be his wife. She couldn't believe this night was finally here. Two years ago, she would have said that emotions were something a soul reaper didn't need. But she was trying to forget old feelings of someone long gone. Ichigo healed those wounds and took a place in her heart. She couldn't take the suspense anymore. "Just spit it out, fool," she said as she smiled vividly.

"Will you marry me?" he asked as he got on one knee and pulled the ring out from his pocket. He looked at her expectantly hoping her answer would be the one he was hoping for.

"Yes…of course yes," she said. She was holding her hands over her mouth. The ring was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. Tears were rolling down her face as she looked up into his face. This was by far the happiest moment of her life.

"Why are you crying?" he asked knowing the answer before he asked. "This is supposed to be a happy moment."

"I'm crying because I'm happy," she said. She walked to the other side of the table and sat on his lap. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he put his around her waist. They kissed for the second time that night, and it was more electrifying than the first. She felt as though the world she knew was becoming something completely new. From here on out their lives would be intertwined forever and nothing could feel more right.

They walked home together holding hands the whole time. All the while Rukia stared at the ring now decorating her finger. As they walked into his father's home, there was an eerie silence in the home. Yuzu and Karin were no doubt asleep by now, but Ichigo's father was nowhere to be seen.

"Welcome…Home…Ichigo!" Isshin Kurosaki yelled as he attempted to surprise Ichigo. Ichigo didn't fall for it and instead side stepped the attack and kicked his father square in the face.

"What was that for?" Isshin asked as he rose back up off the floor with blood running down from his nose and from his lower lip. The imprint of a shoe was clearly visible on his face.

"One, a father isn't supposed to greet his son like that…," he said. "…And second, you forgot to make the reservations like asked!" he yelled as he threw the kitchen table at his father.

"Shut up down there Goat-face!" Karin yelled from her and her twin sister's room.

"So…How did it go?" Isshin asked in a whisper. Rukia held up her hand to show off the ring. Isshin grabbed her up and hugged her so hard she couldn't breathe. "This is great news…now Rukia will really be my third daughter." "Did you hear that Masaki, our son is going to have a wife of his own," he said as he put his arms on the poster of his dearly departed wife. It was hard to believe this goofball was ever a soul reaper. "We've got a wedding to plan."

_That's chapter 1, I hope you enjoyed. please review. Next Chapter, __**The Wedding**__. After that __**The Twins.**_


	2. Chapter 2

Several months had passed since Ichigo had asked Rukia to marry him, and now the day was finally upon them. The couple decided to have their wedding ceremony in the human world. This was decided because of two simple words…Squad Eleven. Every member of that particular squad wanted to see a rematch between Ichigo and Kenpachi, and Ichigo knew if he even set foot in the Soul Society today he would be running away from Kenpachi the entire day. The couple did however invite some Soul Reapers, such as Captain Ukitake and his two third seat officers and the entire Kuchiki clan to the occasion. Rukia decided to invite some of the members of the Soul Society Women's League, two which: Momo Hinamori and Rangiku Matsumoto; were Rukia's bridesmaids. The couple's friends from the world of the living were also going to be in attendance.

The first item on this day's to-do list was to switch to Ichigo's human body and Rukia's gigai. The couple had left Kon and Chappy in their bodies when they went to live in the Soul Society. For Ichigo this decision was made in protest. Kon had a knack for getting Ichigo's body in trouble while he was away. That was why Rukia decided to leave Chappy in the human world as well. She figured Chappy would keep Kon in line. When the couple arrived at the Kurosaki residence, Ichigo was once again greeted by a drop kick to the face by his father.

"You let your guard down son! Isshin shouted. "Besides, I can just say that was payback for last time."

"You idiot, what kind of guy tries to get the drop on his son on his wedding day? Ichigo asked loudly. "I swear if I have a couple of black eyes I'm gonna kick your ass!"

After fighting with his father for a few more minutes, Rukia convinced Ichigo to continue into the house. As they walked into the home a sudden realization hit him.

"Oh crap, I completely forgot!" Isshin yelled as he rushed into the house. He passed Ichigo and Rukia as they went up the stairs and blocked the entrance to Ichigo's room. "You can't go in there Ichigo!" he yelled a t his son.

"Why the hell not Dad…it is my room," Ichigo said with a hint of irritation in his voice.

"Because…uhhh….Because you can't see the bride before the wedding," he said trying to make an excuse quickly. "Yeah that's right can't see the bride before the wedding! He said as he tried to push them down the stairs. "Isshin you're a genius!" he thought to himself.

"Rukia's right here…even in this world we live in the same home, it would be kind of hard not to see each other," Ichigo replied instantly. "What the hell are you hiding?" he asked. He knew his father was trying to hide something, but what could it be? He ran back to his room and flung the door open. When he and Rukia glanced into the room their mouths dropped in shock. Kon and Chappy were both lying in Ichigo's bed with the sheets being the only thing on their bodies.

"Hello Miss Rukia…hop," Chappy said upon seeing Rukia's return. She still had the annoying habit of finishing all of her sentences with the word "hop" as always.

"DAMN IT KON!" Ichigo yelled.

"Hey Ichigo…it's not what it looks like," Kon said quickly.

"Oh really…I think it's exactly what it looks like Kon!"Ichigo yelled as he pushed Kon up against the wall. He turned around and punched his father in the face. "And you …You didn't even do anything to stop them."

"Well, you two were getting married soon, so I didn't really see a problem with it," Isshin said while holding a hand to spot on his face where Ichigo had punched him. "I have to admit though…I never want to hear the word hop ever again."

"Just shut up!" Ichigo yelled not wanting to hear anymore of the details. Needless to say he wouldn't be leaving Kon alone in his body ever again. The two soul reapers quickly changed places with the souls currently occupying their bodies and quickly headed out. They both silently swore never to speak of the incident again.

Upon arriving at the chapel each of them went their separate ways, until they would meet up again later during the ceremony. As Ichigo took his place he took a glance at all the guests that were in attendance. He saw Orihime and Uryu sitting towards the front of the room. The two of them had wound up beating Ichigo and Rukia to the alter by nearly a year, and Orihime was already expecting their first child. She looked like she would have the baby any time now. The two of them were holding hands, but the two of them had entirely different expression on their faces. Orihime had a big smile on her face resting her head on her husband's shoulder. Uryu on the other hand, had an irritated look on his face as he glanced around the room. Ichigo knew that the source of his irritation was not his wife, but the amount of Soul Reapers in the room. His dislike of Soul Reapers was apparently still going strong.

The ceremony began shortly after that. Keigo, Chad, and Renji stood beside Ichigo in that order while Momo, Rangiku, and Tatsuki stood on the other side. Rukia started to walk down the aisle, being escorted down the aisle by his father. Isshin had insisted on being the one who gave his "Third daughter" away, much to Ichigo's annoyance. She looked so beautiful in the white wedding gown she was wearing. It almost seemed as though she was gliding down the aisle. As she turned to face Ichigo, she saw him mouth the words "You look beautiful."

The rest of the wedding seemed to pass in a matter of moments. Before they knew it, it was time for them to give their vows. Ichigo was the first to give them. He placed the ring on Rukia's finger and spoke.

"Rukia, when you came into my life you changed my life," he said. "First you gave me a way to protect the ones I care about the most." "Then, you became the new center to my universe." "I swear through thick and through thin, I will always stay there by your side." "I will be with you in the good times, and I will be in the bad times." "This I do solemnly swear."

Now it was Rukia's turn. "Ichigo, when I first met you love was the last thing on my mind," Rukia said. "However, as time passed by and I learned about your painful past and you began to open up to me, I began to let my defenses down around you." "It scared me at first, but then I realized that solitude wasn't what my heart needed, it needed someone who would love me despite my sins." "That person was you." "I swear through thick and through thin, I will always stay there by your side." "I will be with you in the good times, and I will be in the bad times." "This I do solemnly swear."

The priest looked at the couple and smiled. "By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you man and wife." "You may kiss the bride," he said.

The couple locked lips like so many times before. However, this time seemed so much different. They were no longer Ichigo Kurosaki and Rukia Kuchiki. They were now bound together in marriage; they were now Ichigo and Rukia Kurosaki.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: The Family Expands**

Rukia smiled as she felt the familiar pressure of her husband enter the darkened halls of their home. She waited for him to come wandering into their room. In a matter of moments she felt the bed shift as Ichigo sat down behind her. He reached a hand around her and pulled her in to kiss her on the cheek.

"Good evening Mrs. Kurosaki, I missed you today," he said he pulled his face away hers.

"How did you have time to miss me, from what I've been hearing you've been getting bombarded with paperwork for over a month now," She said with an evil looking grin on her face. "Captain Hitsugaya says that you have really been slacking off," she said trying to goad him.

"When did you talk to him?" he asked.

"Oh I didn't, but Momo stops by from time to time…and since the two of them are dating now he is usually brought up," she said answering his question.

"Easy for that twerp to say, not all of us are geniuses like he is," he said with aggravation clearly visible on his face.

"You're right, genius is not a word anyone would use to describe you," she said teasingly.

"Wow, I seem to be getting such a warm welcome tonight," he responded as he feigned hurt feelings.

Rukia quickly turned around, brought herself to eye level with Ichigo and kissed him on the lips. She pulled herself just far enough away so that he could see her smiling face. "I'm just giving you hard time Idiot, we missed you today too," she said as she placed a hand on her belly.

"I know," he said as he returned her loving smile. "So what has you in such a playful mood tonight midget?" he asked.

"Oh no reason really, but I do have some news though," she replied.

"Oh really… and that would be what?" Ichigo asked his interest clearly peeked.

"Later," she replied simply. "Come on lie down with me, we hardly ever get to see each other lately," she said sweetly.

Ichigo had to admit she did have a point as he looked back at her lovingly. It seemed like he always had something keeping him away from her recently. Usually by the time he would return home to find that she had already fallen asleep. He had to jump at a chance like this. In a matter of moments the two of them were lying together in bed simply enjoying one another's company. Ichigo had her in such a close embrace that she could see his now naked chest rising and falling as he breathed. It would be a long while before either of them spoke a word. Ichigo was counting his blessings she hadn't had one of her mood swings. In the times when he did see her recently he had learned two lessons the hard way. The first of which, was that her moods would change in the blink of an eye. The second of which was that a pregnant soul reaper had fluctuating spiritual pressure, caused by the mother and child sharing each other's spiritual pressure. Seeing as the child was his, it spelled a recipe for disaster. The last time he felt like he was being strangled by that immense pressure when she got angry for no apparent reason.

"Ichigo?" she asked breaking the silence.

"Yeah."

"If we have a boy I was thinking about naming him Kaien," she continued. She looked up at him to see that he wore a very jealous expression on his face.

"You mean after the lieutenant of Squad 13 who died before I met you?" he asked rhetorically. "Yeah sure, that sounds like a good name." "Kaien Kurosaki, I like it…it has a nice ring to it," he said.

"Really, you didn't have any other names in mind?" she asked.

"I did, but that sounds way better," he lied. In truth, he hadn't even given any thought to what they were going to name their child yet. He figured a name would come to him when the baby was born.

"So what about if we have a girl?" she asked clearly becoming skeptical of him. "What kind of names did you have picked out then?"

"Ummmmmmmm…Well?" he said trying to dig himself out of the hole he knew he was digging. All it served to do was dig him a bigger hole.

"You haven't even thought about it have you?" she asked as the anger she was feeling was becoming apparent.

"I still have time don't I?" he asked.

"I'm due in two months how much more time do you need?" she asked furiously.

"Um, how about two months," he replied with a meek laugh.

"What did you expect a name to fly out of your ass when they are born?" she yelled.

"Well kind o…wait, what do you mean "they"?" he asked in mid-excuse.

"You remember that news I was talking about earlier?" she hissed.

"Yeah, what about it?" he asked back.

"How dense can you…here let me show you," she said as got up out of the bed. She grabbed him by the hand and dragged him out of the room. Ichigo didn't say anything, but it felt like he was getting his hand crushed in her grip. When they got close to the baby's room she pushed him inside. He was surprised to see that there was not one crib sitting inside, but instead there were two. Before he knew it he watched as his world went dark, then he felt himself fall to the floor. When he came to again he looked up to see his wife looking down at him.

"Well, that was certainly manly of you," she said trying not to laugh at him.

"Yeah, I would appreciate it if you didn't tell anyone about that, especially anyone in Squad Eleven," he said as he picked himself off the floor. "So twins huh?"

"Yes, Captain Unohana stopped by earlier and confirmed it," she admitted. "One boy and one girl."

He turned around and looked again. Sure enough, one of the cribs had a hint of blue, while the other had a hint of pink. When he turned back around he walked up to his wife and hugged her. "That's great news," he said as he looked into her violet eyes.

After a moment she pushed herself away from him. "I'm still mad at you fool," she said though it was evident in her voice that she had calmed down considerably since a little while ago.

"I know, I'm sorry," he said genuinely. "Look, give me a week, and I promise I'll have a name picked out," he said.

True to his word, Ichigo did have a name picked out for his unborn daughter within the week, and before either he or Rukia the time had arrived. Ichigo had sent a request to Urahara to let his family back in the world of the living through the Senkaimon. Seeing as his father was a former captain trained to use hell butterflies, they had a much safer trip than Ichigo ever had as a teenager. His father volunteered to help Captain Unohana deliver the babies, insisting that he was capable since he was a doctor in the human world. Before they entered the room, Ichigo ran up and grabbed his father by the arm.

"Dad is there anything you need me to do?" he asked.

"Yeah, find a corner and assume the fetal position until were done," Isshin said quickly, prompting Ichigo to do just that for well over two hours. After a few more hours Ichigo heard the first of the two infant's cries, followed shortly thereafter by the second. Later on, Ichigo sat with his wife holding his daughter in his arms, while Rukia held their son. Both of them had Rukia's Violet eyes, but their hair colors were completely different. Kaien's was the exact same color as Ichigo's while his daughter, which he decided to name after his mother, coincidently had the exact same light brown hair color as his mother (due to a recessive gene for it as his father explained). He looked down at her and smiled.

"Welcome to the world Masaki," he said still smiling.


	4. Chapter 4

Old Friends and New Lives

"Damn I could have done without the kids jumping on the bed first thing this morning," Ichigo said as he massaged his neck with one of his hands as he looked forward at his two children running ahead of him.

"It's your fault for telling them we were coming here a week ahead of time, Fool," Rukia said while yawning as the family approached the door of the Kurosaki Clinic.

Flashback

Ichigo awoke to Rukia already sitting up in bed beside him. He turned to look at the clock beside their bed and saw that was too early for her to be awake already. He wondered if she had had to lecture the twins for their usual morning bickering, which was strangely reminiscent of Rukia and his own petty squabbles. However, he dismissed his initial suspicions. First off, the twins were not exactly quiet when they argued. Secondly, he would have felt her spiritual pressure leave the bedroom and travel down the hall. He finally sat up in bed and broke his silence.

"You're up awfully early aren't you?" he asked adding a fake yawn to make it seem like he had not been lying in bed curious about it for the past ten minutes. To his surprise however, the question went unanswered. His wife seemed to be transfixed on some imaginary object in front of her. He soon realized that she was deep in thought. However, this did not prevent him from goading her. "Hey Midget I'm talking to you!" he said louder. He expected her to correct him for the insult, or at least call him an idiot or something. His curiosity quickly began to evolve into worry now. In a last ditch effort he leaned forward and gave her a peck on the cheek. "Hey what's wrong?" he asked. He was pleased when the kiss had finally snapped her out of her trance.

"I-Ichigo, sorry I guess I was a little lost in thought," she said quickly.

"I know it's not like you, you want to tell me what's on your mind?" he asked.

"Oh it's nothing, don't worry about it," she said clearly trying to change the subject. She wore the same fake expression that she used when she was masquerading as a high school student.

"Alright now I know you're hiding something, so you might as well spill it," he ordered.

"Well, it's just…" she began before taking a breath. "Ichigo, have you ever thought about returning to the world of the living?"

He sighed and scratched his head before he answered her. "Sure I have, my family still lives there and it would be great to see them again," he said finally. "However, I'm a captain now, so it's not like I could just take off whenever I want."

"Oh please, you have never been one to let the orders of the Soul Society get in the way of what you want to do," she responded.

He looked into her beautiful violet eyes curiously. "Where exactly is this coming from anyways?"

She averted her eyes away from his and began to rub her arm. "I'm not really sure exactly, but it's been bothering me recently that the twins hardly know your side of the family," she replied.

"Sure it wouldn't be bad to see Yuzu and Karin again, but the less they see of my dad the better," he said thinking back to all of his father's early morning wake-up calls.

"Oh come on Ichigo, sure your father is rough around the edges, but even you have to miss him at times." "Besides, I'm sure he misses his "third daughter" so much," she said.

"Don't remind me," Ichigo said quickly remembering just how much of an idiot his father acted like when he was around Rukia.

"What's wrong Fool, are you jealous that I get more attention than you do," she teased. "Who would have guessed that you were so attached to your Daddy," she continued now pinching his cheek.

"Don't start with me midget," he replied as a vein became visible on his forehead.

After a moment of laughing at his expense she continued. "All joking aside, there are other people we left behind in the World of the Living," she said regaining her seriousness. "We haven't seen Chad, Orihime, or Uryu since our wedding." "Not only that, the last time we saw Orihime she had a child on the way." "I would like to see my friend's child and I'm sure she would feel the same about Kaien and Masaki."

"I guess you have a point, and I see there's going to be no changing your mind," he sighed in defeat. "I'll see what I can do." "Since when did you get so stubborn?" he asked as he tuned to look at her again.

"I have to be to put up with an idiot like you," she said as she punched him in the chest.

"What was that for?" he yelled in disbelief of the blow he had just received.

"For trying to get my attention earlier by calling me a midget," she replied. She then smiled at him and kissed him on the lips. "…And that was a thank you for seeing things my way."

End of flashback

"You did tell everybody that we were coming right?"

"Of course I did, I called my dad the first chance I got, and I told him to have Chad, Orihime, and Uryu come over to," he said as he and Rukia stepped in front of their children and knocked on the door. His two younger sisters greeted him as the door opened.

"Ichigo, Rukia, it's great to see you both again," Yuzu said as she hugged the two of them.

"Hey Ichigo, how's the Soul Reaper business treating you?" Karin asked before turning to Rukia. "Rukia, I hope you're keeping my brother in line."

"Oh I try, but sometimes it's hard to get anything through that thick head of his," Rukia said with a laugh. Ichigo shot an angry look in her direction in response. "Oh relax I'm only teasing," she said smiling. "It's good to see you both."

"RUKIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA," Isshin yelled as he flew through the air and hugged his daughter-in-law.

"It's good to see you sir," Rukia gasped awkwardly as she struggled for air.

"Sir?" Isshin asked sounding offended. "If you won't call me dad at least call me Isshin…anything but sir." He quickly grabbed a hold of both Yuzu and Karin and continued to hug the three of them. "I finally have my three daughters back together in the same house again!" he yelled excitedly.

"Hey Dad I'm back to," Ichigo interrupted.

"Oh you…well I really didn't miss you at all," Isshin said sounding uncaring causing Ichigo to clench a fist in anger. He caught a glimpse of his grandchildren standing behind Ichigo. "If it isn't my two favorite grandchildren, come to grandpa," he said as he moved past his son and picked them up.

"Grandpa we're you're only grandchildren," the twins said in unison giggling.

"Oh I'm sure it won't stay that way," he laughed.

Ichigo turned to his two sisters as his father swooned over his grandchildren. "Oh yeah I heard you two were in college now, how's that going?" he asked

"Alright I guess, Yuzu here has had to beat guys off with a stick," Karin replied as she pointed in her twin sister's direction.

"They just like my cooking Karin," Yuzu shot back.

"Um…that's not exactly what I meant," Ichigo interjected weakly to no avail.

"Yeah that's all they like alright," Karin said sarcastically.

"They would like you too if you weren't so tomboyish and distant!" she yelled back.

"Yeah that's just what I need…it's bad enough that I have ghosts always bugging me." They were both growling at each other now.

"Since when do you two fight so much?" Ichigo asked puzzled. "Let's just enjoy being back together again." He could not believe what he was about to say. "Right, Dad?" he asked.

Unfortunately, Isshin was in his own little world. "Look how big the two of you have gotten," he said to his two grandchildren. "Masaki you look so much like you're grandmother, but I see a lot of your mommy in there to," he said as he squeezed his granddaughter before turning to look at Kaien. "You look a lot like your father Kaien, but its okay you're already better looking than him," he said taking a cheap shot at his son before setting the twins down.

"You better watch it dad or Ichigo will hall off and slug…,"Karin warned, clearly having finished her argument with her sister. A fist made contact with Isshin's head at that very moment. "…Too late," she finished plainly.

"How could you be so cruel to your own father?" Isshin said as fake tears ran down his face.

"Cruel, you've been treating me like crap since I got here!" Ichigo yelled still audibly infuriated.

"Someone can't take a joke," he said as he rubbed his head. He picked himself off the ground and brushed himself off before pointing further into the house. "Come on in, Chad and the others are waiting for you inside." The three of them stood up and greeted their old friends as they crossed the threshold.

"Ichigo, Rukia it's so good to see you both again," Orihime said as she hugged them both. Chad simply waved at the two of them "We've missed you so much," she said with a smile.

"I don't know what you're talking about, I haven't missed them at all," Uryu said stubbornly.

"But they're your friends to Uryu," Orihime said confused.

"Like I'd ever be friends with a soul reaper, I don't care what they have been up to," he said defiantly.

"Oh drop the act Uryu, it's not like your dad is here or something, what's the big deal?" Ichigo said with an annoyed look on his face.

"What's wrong Rukia, you look exhausted?" Orihime asked concerned.

"Oh it's nothing I've just had no energy all day, but we were up late last night getting the kids ready," she replied.

"Kids?" she asked with a look of excitement. "Where are they, I want to see them." At that very moment, the two children walked into the room, and Orihime picked them up immediately and held them tightly. "Look how cute they are!" as she hugged them.

"Thank you pretty lady," Masaki said with a giggle. Her twin brother on the other hand merely looked away with a blush on his face.

"Oh how adorable!" she squealed as she squeezed them harder. "My name is Orihime by the way, and this is Uryu," she said as she pointed at her husband.

"You look like a weirdo," Kaien said as he looked at Uryu.

Ichigo snickered at his son's comment. You hit that nail on the head he thought to himself.

"Kaien, that wasn't very nice!" Rukia lectured. She elbowed Ichigo hard in the gut and gave him a dirty look.

"Sorry," Ichigo said to Rukia as his son said the same to Uryu.

Anyways the little boy here is my son…," she paused as she looked down as the little boy moved behind her leg. His hair was the same color as Orihime's but his eyes were the same color as Uryu's eyes. Ichigo and Rukia immediately recognized his hairstyle as being the same as Orihime's elder brother Sora. "Oh stop being so shy Hamaya, these are mommy's friends and their children, they won't hurt you," she said as she grabbed his hand.

"Hello Hamaya, my name is Rukia," she said as she knelt down and outstretched a hand and let him shake it. She gestured over to her daughter. This is my daughter Masaki and the rude little one over there is my son Kaien," she said as her children moved closer.

"Hi Hamaya," Masaki said as she began to blush vividly.

Ichigo immediately went into overprotective dad mode and grabbed Uryu by the collar. "Keep your son away from my daughter Ishida," he said angrily.

"Relax you moron, their just kids Kurosaki," Uryu said in defense.

Both of their wives simply laughed at them.

Kaien moved towards the giant in the corner. "Who are you mister?" he asked in awe of him.

"Sado," he replied to him. "But your dad over there calls me Chad."

"But why does he call you Chad?" he asked.

"I often wonder that myself," Chad replied.

A moment passed before Orihime broke the silence. "Oh I almost forgot, I made something special to celebrate the occasion," she said as she hurried out of the room. When she returned several minutes, she was carrying enough small dishes for everyone in the room on two trays. She quickly handed each person a dish. Hamaya face lit up as she set the dish down in front of him, while Uryu's turned to one of disgust before quickly turning to a fake smile. Everyone else looked down in puzzlement at what was now setting in front of them. Rukia was the first to ask the question on everyone's mind.

"What exactly is this Orihime?"

"Oh it's nothing really I had it once at school and it became one of my absolute favorites," she replied. "It's Taiyaki style ramen with Wasabi and Honey." "I'm glad I made extra," she said with a smile.

"Yum my favorite Orihime," Uryu lied.

Ichigo leaned in next to Uryu. "This is your favorite?" he asked in a whisper.

"No, but it is hers and Hamaya's," he replied also in a whisper. "If I don't eat when she does make something, she'll start to wonder why exactly it is that I always cook." "Just do me a favor and pretend like you like it."

Ichigo looked at the meal before whispering again. "Fine, but you owe me."

They all began to dig in shortly afterwards. It was easy to see that most of them were barely choking it down, but three of them seemed like they couldn't get enough. Hamaya and Orihime were no surprise, but to everyone else's surprise Rukia seemed to be enjoying every bite. Unfortunately, it appeared to come back and haunt her later.

Ichigo sat in front of the closed door of the bathroom in his father's room. His father was sleeping on the couch, while his sisters slept in their old room. The twins were fast asleep in his old room with Kon under strict orders to lay there, be quiet, and act like a normal stuffed animal. The others had gone home for the evening. Luckily, Rukia had started getting sick until after Orihime had left.

He cringed at the sound he could hear coming from the other side of the door. He would rather hear a hollow's cry than this.

"I don't get it, you seemed to be one of the only ones enjoying that meal of hers," he said so she could hear through the door.

"Shut…up…Idiot," she said between breaths. "It actually tasted pretty good the first time, the second time…not so much."

"Well that makes one of us that thought that," he laughed. "The kids actually begged me never to make them eat something like that again."

"I don't think it's the food, I've been queasy off and on all day," she confessed.

"Now who's the idiot, why didn't you tell me you were sick?"

"I thought it was just an upset stomach, it seemed to pass quickly enough."

"You should have said something, everyone would have understood if we postponed on them."

"How often are we going to have chance like this with the life we lead?"

"Point taken, but still…," he said before being interrupted by a sickening sound coming from the bathroom. "Never-mind, we can discuss it later," he said quickly. Somehow, despite it all, the two of them had managed to fall asleep, though neither made it back to the bed. Ichigo was awoken by the now all too familiar sound of her getting sick the following morning. He rubbed his sore neck cursing haven fallen asleep sitting in front of the bathroom door. The twins, his sisters, and his father all came to check to see how Rukia. He was relieved when his father offered to give her a check up, though the same could not be said about Rukia at first.

Isshin walked out of his examination room what seemed like an eternity later. Ichigo was sure she was sick, but he didn't think it would be anything serious. He let the twins watch the television (which they were fascinated with seeing as they did not exist in the Soul Society) and walked over to his father.

"So what's she have the flu or something?" he asked.

"She's got nine months," Isshin replied almost emotionlessly.

"Nine months, is it that serious?" he asked as he filled with horror.

"She's got nine months of asking you to get her the craziest things to eat, having mood swings, and punishing you for getting her into this mess," his father clarified. "Apparently, you still have some strong swimmers after all of those battles my son," he whispered so only Ichigo could hear.

Realization finally dawned on him as to what his father was actually saying, and a brand new fear started to grow in him. The twins having seen their father frozen in place walked over to check on him.

"What's wrong Daddy, is Mommy okay?" Masaki asked.

"Yeah, she's fine, but the next couple months could be rough on us," he replied.

"What do you mean?" Kaien asked this time.

"You would know if you saw her llast time.


End file.
